Inspire Yoga

In yoga is it essential that you  respect and listen to your body . Allow the practise to be for yourself rather than to keep up with a class at large. If you feel exhausted or dizzy during the practise, child’s pose is great to rest in and it helps to renew your energy. If you have delicate ankles or knees sit on a block or place your feet on a cushion to provide more support. One of the Yoga Basic Poses That Can Renew Your Energy To set up the pose, bring your feet and knees together and sit your hips on your heels. If the front of your feet feel too push pressure, tuck your toes under on to the mat. You’re your abdomen on the top of your thighs and place your head on the floor. If you you’re your back is too rounded in this position, keeping your feet together separate your knees to the width of your mat, lengthening your back further in this pose. You may feel a slight stretch around your inner thighs, if this is the case, bring your knees to close together. You can a...

Downward facing dog is a basic pose that is accessible to most beginners, for advanced practitioners this posture is considered a resting pose! In setting up the pose make sure your arms are shoulder distance apart and your knees are hip-distance apart, tuck your toes under and actively push your hands and feet into the mat. Straighten your legs and push your hips upwards as your back cascades downwards. A Relaxing Yoga Positions for Beginners That Increases Stamina There are 3 stages of advancement of reaching the full pose: straight arms, straight back and straight legs. Take each stage as a prerequisite to moving on to the next; there is no point trying to straighten your legs if your elbows are bent and your back is rounded. If you feel tired do not compromise the posture by bending your arms and hunching your shoulders forwards, instead feel free to bend your knees and allow your back to lengthen further. Push your hands down into the mat with your fingers spread apart...

It’s a sad fact that today’s youth are plagued with pressure- high expectations to attain academic success, to excel in sports, hobbies and leadership positions and with the onslaught of social media minute by minute comparisons among peers exacerbates the problem. Isn’t childhood supposed to be the time in our life where we are carefree and adventurous? As a parent it can be a tough time supporting a child who isn’t coping well, instead of simply labelling it as a maladaptive behavior, anxiety or character traits, let’s do what we can to identify the problem and nurture our child in a holistic way so that they feel supported as they learn how to traverse the information overload of the digital age. Stress is epigenetic, it gets passed down as a behavior, then a habit than the normalization of being on high alert. Where do they pick this up from? They model what they see, at home and at school, it’s completely acceptable that adults are stressed on a daily basis, that they deal wit...

This is an easily accessible pose to your body, the main challenge is holding your balance- thus this is a  great concentration exercise . However, if you have delicate ankles or have injured them previously please do not attempt the full pose, if standing on one leg is uncomfortable to feel free to place your toes on the floor.   Best Yoga Exercises That Improves Your Sense of Balance To set up the pose, simply stand up with you feet together, lift one foot up and place in the inside of your standing leg, be it your inner thigh or on the side of your shin. Your standing foot should be planted firmly into the mat and  the standing leg anchors the pose by actively pushing downwards . At the same time, the lifted foot is engaged by pushing into the standing leg and the standing legs resist maintaining equilibrium between the opposing forces. You want to imagine that your legs are hugging into the mid-line of your body. On the same token, your palms should push t...

In yoga, there are two aspects for your mind to focus on: the stretch and your breath. Bringing all your attention to your breath has meditative qualities as it frees you from any other thoughts that preoccupy your mind. When stressed or burdened by emotions it is advised to take a minute to focus on your breathing; taking deep inhalations and slow exhalations, bringing a sense of calmness and lowering your heart rate.  Pranayama,  yogic breathing , influences the flow of energy throughout your body using your nervous system (especially your spine) as the pathway of energy movement.  Our breath is affected by our circumstances and moods. We take more forceful breaths when angry and slower breaths when relaxed. The ratios in which we inhale and exhale vary depending on what state we are in. During sleep, exhalations dominate bringing rest, and during the day inhalations predominate as it is influenced by activity and the external environment. Furthermore, the flow of...

Learning how to relax is fundamental to our physical and mental well-being. After a stressful day our bodies and minds may not be able to relax and when lying down to rest or sleep your muscles may continue to carry a certain amount of residual tension which over time can be a constant drain on your energy resources. Corpse pose, or Sivasana, helps to train our minds to consciously let go of any strain, mental and physical in order for us to reach a state of deep relaxation. When lying in bed tossing and turning to find sleep try lying flat on your back and tense up every muscle in your body, hold it for a few seconds and let it go, feel yourself sinking down into your bed and the tension drifting away. Another exercise you can try is to visualise any tension drifting away as you relax each part of your body from your feet up to your head feeling your whole body heavy and your mind completely calm, taking deep breaths in and long, slow exhalations. If this helps to relax you ...

Inspire Wellness is a 6 part series of lectures exploring the effects of lifestyle on our health and what we can do to slow down aging. Experts from some of Hong Kong’s largest institutions in health and wellness will be sharing their research and knowledge in the areas of sleep, stress management, brain health, movement, beauty, nutrition, mental and physical well being. You will be leaving with practical tips to gain control over your health now and prevent aging diseases in the future. Mark Your Calendars!  19 April – Nutrition 3 May- Stress 10 May- Move 24 May- Sleep 7 June- Learn 14 June- Beauty The talks are held twice each day, 10am-12pm OR 6:30pm-8:30pm at Alive Wellness in Central, Hong Kong Thursday 19 April: TO EAT OR NOT TO EAT? Clear the confusion on intermittent fasting and time restricted feeding. Learn what to eat and how best to nourish your body to slow aging. Experience shifts in your mental patterns that encourage he...

From the time we enter the world to the time we leave; our breath is with us every moment. Breathing is the critical sign of vitality- however if we are not breathing correctly it can drain our energy. The breath itself can help bring life and energy to the body- that is why in yoga we treat it as the fabric of health and wellness. The human body can go 3 weeks without food, 10 days without water but only 3 minutes without breathing- our breath is our most important source of energy. In yoga, breathwork is called Pranayama, Prana means energy, so these breathing exercises facilitate the movement of energy. Stress causes tension and tightness around the neck and shoulders, affecting our posture to slouch which restricts our breathing. The full contraction and relaxation of muscles is thwarted causing the volume of the chest cavity to increase and decrease to a much smaller proportion than their capacity. The result? The breath becomes shallow and short, to compensate for the small...

Mindful movements provide a productive outlet to release pent up energy that would otherwise make us feel aggressive and anxious, helping us to feel more relaxed and experience better quality sleep. Exercise decreases the risk of developing certain diseases especially high blood pressure and cholesterol. Chronic stress physiologically releases a hormone called adrenaline which contributes to increased risk of heart disease, signs of high blood pressure and high cholesterol, exercise decreases stress levels and regulates adrenaline levels keeping heart disease at bay. The mindful movement is an embodied learning, it releases endorphins but also forces us to pay attention to our breathing that promotes feelings of calm and wellness and frees us from the cycle of negative thought patterns.  The movement paired up with breath awareness releases stress, physiologically the release of hormones from the exercise decreases the risk of high blood pressure and high cholesterol  from...

Having come from a background of investment banking I saw my yoga practice as a time to dissolve tension from my body and release stress from my mind. I used to be a derivatives trader and coping with the time pressure of the job left me feeling very stiff and exhausted. It was then when I realized it was because my mind and body were so disconnected, my mind racing all day and my body completely sedentary at my desk. Yoga helped me to realign the connection by bringing mental stillness and physical agility. It made a tremendous impact on my energy levels and made me feel much more alert at work. I realized by address my body through stretching, strengthening and balancing poses I needed to focus on the subtle rhythm of the breath which in turn freed me from the mental inner chatter that kept me feeling so tight. In the ‘work hard, play hard’ environment of Hong Kong I wanted to be able to share this gift of inner calm and proper alignment with my colleagues who were burnt out and ...

Have you ever noticed yourself slouching at your desk or during a meeting? For those who sit in front of a computer 8-10 hours a day, it is inevitable that your body suffers from stiffness around the neck, shoulders and back areas. If stiffness is not timely released, the physical stress could eventually lead to other issues, such as chronic pain and potential risk in restricting blood flow. More than often than not, many living and working in this hectic city have limited time on hand to go out of their way to attend yoga classes in a studio; because of this, home practices and private yoga lessons become crucial and beneficial to sustain a healthy work-life balance. Further, spending 15 minutes a day –  whether in the morning, midday before the lunch break, coming out of a dreadful meeting, or late in the evening –  is one of the best ways to release stiffness, improve posture, and foster this lifelong habit. After a long night of sleep, your body needs time to adj...

Neck and shoulder stiffness is a common symptom for people in the modern era. Postural habits are the ultimate culprit. Too many corporate warriors and office dwellers spend long hours in front of the computers.  When we are stuck physically idle in the same position for hours with minimal movements, the muscle and connective tissue tend to be dehydrated and weakened. The next most common cause for problematic neck and shoulders is smartphone usage. Since the birth of the smartphone, wifi and unlimited data plan, people of all ages are constantly on their device for a long period of time.  The increased usage of the mobile phone becomes a mindless action during commute; it is so severe that many people are not aware of their poor postural habit. Next time, take a few minutes and observe your train/bus/ferry ride – you will be surprised to see the number of people slouching. Fortunately, this poor postural habit can be corrected consciously. The most natural way to hydrate ...